SeelenvsSpesenConfusable pair

Which to use

“Seelen” and “Spesen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#7,109
“Seelen” frequency rank
#36,028
“Spesen” frequency rank
43137
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Seelen Spesen
Definition Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Seele Kosten, die in Ausübung einer beruflichen oder geschäftlichen Tätigkeit entstanden sind

Where the eye mixes Seelen and Spesen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. Seelen (CVVCVC) and Spesen (CCVCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

6 ch
Seelen
6 ch
Spesen

Look-alike desk: Seelen vs Spesen

A purely visual mix-up. Seelen ([ˈzeːlən]) and Spesen ([ˈʃpeːzn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43137, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Seelen is recorded at frequency rank #7,109, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈzeːlən]. Spesen is at rank #36,028, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃpeːzn̩].

Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.

With a confusion score of 43137, this pair ranks #1,427,486 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Seelen vs Spesen

Shared letters: ens. Private to "Seelen": l. Private to "Spesen": p.

"Seelen" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC  ·  "Spesen" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Seelen ← eselen · seeeln · seelenn · seellen · seelne · seleen · selen · sseelen
  • Spesen ← psesen · sepsen · speesn · spesenn · spesne · spessen · sppesen · spseen

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "Seelen" and "Spesen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈzeːlən] versus [ˈʃpeːzn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Seelen" or "Spesen"?
"Seelen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,109 in our German list, against #36,028 for "Spesen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Eye-level mix-up between "Seelen" and "Spesen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Seelen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Spesen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,427,486 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Seelen" and "Spesen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Spesen vs Stelen". Nearby pair
  • Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes

Confusion rank #1,427,486 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list